Prediction: Harold Won’t Miss This Deadline

by R. Scott Clark on June 3, 2013

Zeke Piestrup has made a documentary following Harold Camping (and see this post) and company in the days leading up to and just after May 21, 2011, the day Camping had said Jesus would return—Apocalypse Later: Harold Camping vs. The End Of The . . . Continue reading →

Calvin: Instruments In Public Worship Is The Restoration of Shadows

by Heidelblog on June 3, 2013

For even now, if believers choose to cheer themselves with musical instruments, they should, I think, make it their object not to dissever their cheerfulness from the praises of God. But when they frequent their sacred assemblies, musical instruments in celebrating the . . . Continue reading →

Heidelcast 24: Give It A Rest—What Christians Can Learn From Chick-Fil-A

by Heidelcast on June 2, 2013

Your Creator wants you to take a break. I’m a Chick-Fil-A fan. Love the peach shakes. It’s one of the few places in this area where I can find real sweet tea. There’s another reason to like Chick-Fil-A. They love their employees . . . Continue reading →

The Reformed Doctrine of the “Communicatio”

by R. Scott Clark on June 1, 2013

Over at the Puritanboard Sebastian asks I find often that people think the Refgormed undiscrimantely reject(ed) the communicatio idiomatum. However, the 2nd Helvetic Confession is as clear as any in accepting it. However, it does not qualify the way later theological formulations . . . Continue reading →

Bavinck On Gospel In The Narrow Sense

by Heidelblog on May 30, 2013

And indeed, strictly speaking, there are no demands and conditions in the gospel but only promises and gifts. Faith and repentance are as much benefits of the covenant of grace as justification (and so forth). Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, 4.454 (HT: James . . . Continue reading →

Gay Christians? (2)

by R. Scott Clark on May 30, 2013

In part one I sketched the biblical evidence for the claim that homosexuality is a sin. In part two I address the argument that some make in defense of the notion that there are such things as “gay Christians” is the appeal . . . Continue reading →

Gay Christians? (1)

by R. Scott Clark on May 29, 2013

I’ve been speaking with an especially thoughtful young person recently who asked me whether it was appropriate to speak of “Gay Christians.” My first response was to ask whether it is appropriate to speak of “Murderer Christians” or “Thief Christians” or “Idolater . . . Continue reading →

Office Hours: David VanDrunen on Hebrews 12

by R. Scott Clark on May 27, 2013

Hebrews 12 is a vital chapter in the book. In it we get a clearer sense of the challenges they faced, the persecution they were experiencing for Christ’s sake, and the temptation they had to overcome by God’s grace. The pastor invokes . . . Continue reading →

Advice To Young Preachers

by R. Scott Clark on May 27, 2013

Time was that church historians also taught church polity and what is sometimes called pastoral theology. This was, I suppose, because we used to recognize that the study of the history of the practice of the church gives a certainsight into how . . . Continue reading →

Finals and the Covenant of Works

by R. Scott Clark on May 25, 2013

It’s the season for final exams at Westminster Seminary California. I always get a little nervous during a final, even though I’m the one giving it and not the one taking it. Naturally I want the students to do well but by the . . . Continue reading →

Where Was Our Church Before Luther And Zwingli? (6)

by Heidelblog on May 25, 2013

XIII. Third, as to place, the question can be understood in two ways. It may be understood definitely concerning the certain and constant seat of the church (such as Rome is) and in that continued series of bishops or pastors which the . . . Continue reading →

Religious Freedom Watch: What the IRS Wants to Know About Your Religion (Updated)

by R. Scott Clark on May 23, 2013

Originally published 18 May, 2013. Updated 23 May 2013 (below). From the 16 May 2013 Memo to the Hon. Aaron Schock, Member of Congress, Committee of Ways and Means, from Thomas Brejcha, Peter Breen, Sally Wagenmaker, Esqs. Thomas More Society. The IRS . . . Continue reading →

Where Was Our Church Before Luther And Zwingli (5)

by Heidelblog on May 23, 2013

X. Nevertheless, that we may not seem to shun the question (as if it were insoluble [alytos] by us), we can answer directly that the question puts on a fourfold relation or has reference to four things: (1) the doctrine and faith . . . Continue reading →

We Are Not Polishing Brass On A Sinking Ship

by R. Scott Clark on May 23, 2013

More than 30 years ago, when I first came into contact with Reformed theology, piety, and practice (the Reformed confession broadly defined), I also came into contact with a movement within the Reformed world known as “Christian Reconstructionism” and its child “theonomy.” . . . Continue reading →

Reading Scripture As The Apostles Did Or Some Other Way?

by R. Scott Clark on May 22, 2013

Darrel, writes, “After reading your paper, The Israel of God, it struck me that you did not mention any of the as yet to be fulfilled prophesies concerning the Nation of Israel. Why? Also, it seems that you cast things in a . . . Continue reading →

Where Was Our Church Before Luther And Zwingli? (4)

by Heidelblog on May 21, 2013

VIII. Fifth, the injustice of the demand appears also clearly in this—that they treacherously corrupt the writings of the fathers and endeavor to destroy whatever of candor remains and extinguish all memory of antiquity as far as they are able (most base . . . Continue reading →

Heidelcast 23: Ecstasy is Not Christianity

by Heidelcast on May 21, 2013

Concern about dead formalism or ritualism is legitimate but we should not think that because a religious service is emotionally or psychologically satisfying or that because one has a certain kind of ecstasy that one has escaped dead formalism. There is a . . . Continue reading →

When Pastors Go Rogue

by R. Scott Clark on May 21, 2013

The church always exists in some culture, somewhere. Prior to the new heavens and the new earth, the church will never be free of the influence of the prevailing culture where it finds itself. Because we’re in the culture, because we are . . . Continue reading →

Are You Called to Ministry? Fill Out Form Get A Free Book

by R. Scott Clark on May 20, 2013

Seminary students and future seminary students frequently ask how to discover whether one is called to pastoral ministry. It’s a challenging discussion because there are two aspects to the call to ministry, internal and external, and both take time to discover and . . . Continue reading →

How to Understand and Preach Romans 7

by R. Scott Clark on May 19, 2013

My impression is that, over the last few decades, the historic Reformed reading of Romans 7 has taken one on the chin, as it were. Perhaps that’s not so. I’ve not done a survey to see how pastors are reading and preaching . . . Continue reading →